Chapter Fifty One: Growing up
Every club in the area would open its door to a beauty like Ella on her birthday, but ideas had been and gone, and Ella had made the brave decision to host a house party, gifting her full control over music, food and more importantly; drinks.
Of which she was indulging in when the girls turned up.
Another benefit of hosting at her house; no bouncers to check for underage girls dressed in dresses designed to attract the wrong kind of attention.
Mia had pulled another winning combination of hair and make-up to match the colours and fabrics they wore with explosive style.
"Happy birthday to me!" Ella announced loudly from the crowded kitchen, where the guests claimed their favourite beverage with the sole intention of getting drunk with the birthday girl.
There were cars lined up around the block, most to be abandoned for the night in trade for a taxi home or crashing on Ella's floor.
Letty gripped Mia's hand in solidarity.
Letty was helping open up the garage tomorrow and had already volunteered to be the designated driver to get Mia back home. Her baby was parked around the block and just waiting for celebrations to wind down and Mia to crave Alex enough to go home to his nightly phone call.
"Oh, is that Andrea?" Mia released the grip she had on Letty and with an elaborate wave, Mia was racing to meet an old friend.
Letty turned her focus to her best party hobby; finding Dom.
He'd needed far less time to get ready and been picked up by Vince, with the hopes Dom would assist him in creating a suitable apology to Tessa on the drive over.
Dom was nothing short of in his element, glowing in the presence of others, vibrating with the pulse of the music. Letty couldn't resist the urge to lay her eyes on him, make a claim, to show all the onlookers he was hers.
But she knew the rules; nothing public.
It didn't stop her from being drawn in his direction, to the bimbo's that wanted to hear about his next race, his last race and every other story he would entertain them with. Hanging on his every word as if it would get them closer to his heart.
Idiots.
Letty stalked the last steps with measure, landing by his side, as she should be.
"-such speed though?"
"You busy?" Letty interrupted, no care for their previous conversation.
Dom's eyes met hers and it was like he could read straight to her soul. He threw her his sloppy smirk that said he knew she wanted him.
How could he not in the little dress she wore? It was scandalous and elegant at the same time. A lady with a wild side would wear this with bold pride. Letty tried to emulate that in her posture as she leaned into him.
"Though you were keeping my little sister company?" he asked, tease heavy, like the rest of the girls had faded away and it was just the two of them again.
"She's fine." Letty narrowed the distance that separated them, heels carefully stepping closer. She couldn't resist a touch, her hand trailing across his jeans to find the fingers that hung at his sides. Just hand to hand, just contact enough to confirm they were there together. Even if it was in a stolen moment, out of anyone's sight. Her fingers nudged his wrist only to find it withdrawn at speed, the space between them casually extended.
"Make sure she's got a ride home, yeah?"
Dom physically turned from her, ending the conversation and launching into an explanation of how he'd won his last race.
Dismissed, Letty felt her anger bubble up.
But she walked away with it, back to find Mia, or until Dom was alone.
That moment came an hour later, as he was heading upstairs to the bathroom. Letty chased him up the stairs and pushed him hard off course and into a bedroom.
"The hell, Le-"
"You planning on just ignoring me every time we go out then?" she challenged.
"We talked about this. You're underage Letty, I can't be see-"
"No, I get that. But common decency, you know. I'm not just some loser kid hanging around you. You can fucking talk to me."
"I do."
"You've shoved me off to go back to Mia everytime I've tried to have a conversation with you."
"What do you want me to do? I'm not going to ignore y-"
"Ignore me? Why, because you've never done that before."
"What?"
"You're pretty adapt at blanking me actually. Can go for days."
"Is this about the other day? I told you, we were swamped at work. I genuinely didn't have time to walk you through getting off on text."
"I know, you told me."
"Letty." His hands took her face. "I love you." He pressed a kiss to her forehead, avoiding the lipstick his sister was no doubt responsible for. "And I'm taking you home to my bed tonight and we'll discuss it then. But trust me, you are the only one I'm thinking about at this party."
"I know… it's just, why can't you even talk to me."
"Because it won't stop at talking, and I'll end up in a prison cell with some cop trying to stick me as a paedophile."
Letty couldn't help but laugh. "So you gunna be good and keep temptation at bay?"
"Fine." She rolled her eyes. "I suppose I can do that. But you still owe me for not texting when I went to my aunts."
"Woah woah woah." He took her by the arm as she attempted to leave. "Oh we're talking about this now." He had a smile on his face. "Two way street missy, it's not like you were blowing up my phone to sort things out either."
"I thou-"
"Oh, woops." The drunken apology came to the door itself rather than the couple it interrupted, a highly intoxicated blonde hung on the doorknob for balance, looking a bit green. "Bathroom?" she asked and both sets of fingers pointed her next door.
She left with a lurch, door wide open and passers by staring in.
"Later Letty." Dom vowed, hand sliding across her waist as he stepped out.
Jesse and Leon were in the heat of an argument again. Their creative minds battling to create the best fantasy car, trading out parts and designs for the best handling, speed and look.
They'd amassed quite a crowd by the time Letty and Mia joined the room.
They settled themselves in with a glass of coca cola which each would deny the smell of coconut, from the added Malibu, existed.
It wasn't long before they were adding voices to the mass, insisting each choice could be bettered, fighting defence for their suggestions when aggro came back.
"Jesse's right, you'd be sacrificing any ability to maintain speed on corners if you chose that engine."
The voice from the heavenly angel that was Laura stopped Jesse in his tracks.
Jesse paused and that brought the whole group to a silence. "But… if that's why you want…" she trailed off, noting all eyes on her, a blush rising slowly.
Mia was all too happy to be the wingman nobody asked for.
"You're Laura, right? Jesse never shuts up about you, and you are just as pretty as he said." The compliments rushed out at speed as Mia took her legs in strides over the other bodies in the area and to embrace Laura in a tight hug. "Oh my gosh, have you seen what Jesse designed the other day?" Laura didn't have a chance to answer as Mia was dragging her across to Jesse by the hand. "Jesse you have to show Laura what you drew up the other day." Mia instructed, no option presented but the one Mia insisted upon. "It is absolutely amazing, but I dunno, I just think it's missing something, and you seem to be on the same Jesse wavelength, so you absolutely must take a look. Pleeeeeeeease." Mia was an expert manipulator, she pulled out her big puppy dog eyes and Laura was agreeing to follow a suddenly sweaty Jesse through his phone's photo album. Letty rolled her eyes as Mia played matchmaker so obviously. Leon slung an arm over the closest lady and drew her near, no doubt asking her opinion about his ideas, sieving for compliments.
"She always that obvious?" a voice sat down besides Letty and she turned to it.
Adam, one of Jesse's school friends he kept in touch with. He was more of a motorbike guy than cars, and he worked in finance. More brains than brawn.
"Wouldn't be Mia if she wasn't." Letty agreed, watching as Mia pretended to be unable to see something, an obvious excuse to bring their bodies closer.
"You guys not finished the expansion yet?"
"Still got some last touches, and Mia approval."
"Could be another year then?" he joked and Letty found herself smiling.
Adam was easy this way, softer than the usual guys that ran into her life. "You think I'm getting my drinking buddy back at any point or should I find someone else?" he asked, nod towards Jesse.
"If Mia gets her way, your friend's gone all night."
"Damn." he chuckled. "Dom sort out that hire you needed?"
"Not yet."
"You mind passing on I got a friend in Cali who's looking for something? Great mechanic, but it'd only be temporary."
"Dom should be somewhere around." Letty spun on her seat, twisting at angle to see through the doorway. She couldn't see said man. "But yeah, I'll pass it along."
"Oh, wait, I can't find my…" Mia's voice cut through the music again, stepping away from the newly paired couple. "I'll be right back, don't move." And then Mia was stepping back to Letty, hiking an arm under hers. "Oh, hey Adam, Jesse's booked all night."
"You have no intention of returning to them do you?" Adam guessed.
"Not at all, but it ensures they'll keep talking to each other for the next 10 minutes at least." Mia grinned at him. "Com'on, we gotta split for a bit." Mia guided Letty through the patio doors and into the garden. "Why was Dom glaring at you anyway?" Mia asked as they found the footpath back to the front door.
"When?"
"Just now. Like literally, staring like a stalker."
"Where was he?"
"Near the speaker, didn't you see him?"
"No." Letty spun her head back but the line of sight was gone. "Was he mad?"
"No, more caveman, mine, grrr." Mia offered with a laugh. "Like Adam would make a move on you?" Mia peeled her head back for a laugh.
"Why not?" the demand came from a place of insecurities with a bite of backlash.
"Because you don't have a penis." Mia explained.
"Ummm, what?"
"He's gay."
"Since when?"
"Since college, that's why they're such good friends. As soon as Jesse got his own place, he made Adam move in with him, his dad was super religious, kept saying he'd grow out of it. Used to beat him for it." Mia gave backstory like she lived it.
"How do you know this?"
"Adam's boyfriend used to come to the races, he got chatty after a few drinks."
"SHOTS!" Ella's voice called out to them through the open window, fingers pointed their way as she poured one handed into plastic shot glasses. "Birthday shots! You have to join in or it's bad luck and my birthday wish won't come true." Ella was leant halfway out the window as she continued to call out to them.
"Oh my god, don't tell Dom." Mia whispered in conspiracy, dragging her best friends hand back into the house and direct to the kitchen.
Ella was surrounded by people, as she liked best, somehow managing to be dancing on the kitchen counter by the time the girls made their way through the audience. Ella had her long legs on their best display yet, cheeky shorts winked out the perfectly rounded globes of her ass as she swung her hips low and long in time to a deep beat. Male attention was singularly focusses as she flipped her hair over her shoulder and raised her arms high, music swallowing her body whole.
"Shots!" Ella whisper shouted, both fingers jabbed at the girls. "This is going to be the best year, yet!" an echo of cheers resounded from her whoop of joy in the words. "I'm going to get every, damn, thing, I want." Ella grinned wide at Letty and made her way towards to crowd below her, perfectly happy to sail into the open arms of her admirers to float to the floor. "So, you need to drink to me." Ella finished, plucking two shot glasses from the tray.
"What is it?" Letty asked, inspecting the liquid and its petrol-esque shimmer.
"Does it matter?" Mia countered, swinging the shot back in time with Ella. "Oh, god, what is it?" Mia asked after coughing.
"It's the dirty birthday pint's babies." Ella explained like Mia was an alien. "And it's such bad luck if you don't have some." She extended a fresh one to Letty.
"I'm planning to drive back." she countered.
"And now you're getting a taxi or a ride." Ella offered instead, wiggling the shot.
"You ate three burgers before we came here, you'll be fine." Mia insisted.
"One itsy, bitsy, teeny, tiny shot. Never hurt nobody. And if you don't… I might walk under a ladder and a piano falls on my head, and you'll be solely responsible because you di-" Letty snatched the tiny cup and tipped it between her open lips. "Yay, have another!" Ella cheered, turning to grab some more shots.
"How many have you had?" Mia asked when Ella swayed on her heels.
"The rule is one for each year of life." Ella proudly answered. "And I'm not even in my twenties yet!" she laughed. "More sh-" Ella paused, eyes on the door and then she was flying out of the gathering screaming the name of the latest girl who had stepped in. Claiming it had been 'forever' since she last saw her, and demanding an instant catch up.
Letty and Mia took that opportunity to exit the drink station and filter through back to the living room.
Except, they got distracted by the garden that was now filled with boys in a tipsy version of 5 a-side soccer and Pookie was barking loudly from his position tied in the garden, wanting to join in.
"Oh, that's Pookie?" Mia cooed, re-routing both of them towards the dog that was snapping drool as it barked. No fear, Mia went straight to pet the mutt. 5 seconds later, it was rolling over for a belly scratch. All bark, no bite.
Letty rolled her eyes.
"Doesn't she want to be back inside? It's kinda loud for her." Letty suggested, hearing every word of the musicians grandiose financial gratuity to bitches, and that was without a dog's hearing range.
"Oh, Ella must have forgotten, com'on Pookie-bear, we'll settle you back in your room." Mia had no concern unhooking the dog from the long lead and post, leading it through the patio doors and the small room out back. She had no qualms about making Letty wait against the doorframe as she proceeded with a long dog-baby talk and fuss.
"Oh, you absolute angels." Ella's arms came from behind Letty and snared her easily. "I told you Pookie loves you guys!" emotional and tipsy, Ella was adorably hands-on. Letty wasn't the biggest fan, but… Ella was pretty cool, as far as other females went.
"We just figured it was quieter here."
"Oh my god, yes, of course it is. Well, unless Laura moans like a whore." Ella barked out a laugh.
"Why, oh my god, is she with Jesse?"
"With Jesse?" Ella repeated with an unlady like snort. "She was climbing all over him."
"Seriously?" Letty was dragged out by her hand, starting to get annoyed with their 'stay together' pact.
Midnight and Letty and Mia were in a deep whispered debate about the theatre play before them.
Mia was under an alcohol blanket creeping in tiredness and stubborn need to stay awake. Letty had stopped drinking before Mia, passing the drinks that kept coming from Ella to anyone else that was walking past.
They were currently on one of the sofa's watching out the windows as Vince and Tessa were arguing. It was definitely arguing, there was no denying that.
But without the volume, the girls were designing their own plot.
"See, she did it again, she's saying it's over." Mia repeated, nudging Letty as Tessa once again swung her arms wide.
"Or, she's asking how many of the other girls here she needs to beat up?" Letty offered, picking up on the jabbed finger that kept shooting back into the party.
"He's gunna lose his temper soon." Mia guessed.
"Not with Tessa." Letty thought aloud, watching as once again he stroked a hand down his face and then purposefully crossed his arms on his chest, tightly.
"She's pushing him." Mia tilted her head. "Or… he's just figured out he likes her."
"He's not an easy man to read."
"Or to argue with. She's back to the same point as before."
They watched as Tessa stomped her foot and screamed out another round.
"Oh, she's leaving." Mia's eyes went wide and she sat up as Tessa stuck another cowboy heel in the dirt and spun on it, heading out and away.
"He's not happy." Letty added, both sets of eyes on the way he lunged for her, ensnaring her wrist.
"She didn't like that." Mia agreed, noting how Tessa snatched back her arm, adding a few hard shoves to Vince.
"It's over." Letty concluded. "We should stop watching."
"Yeah." The pseudo-sister agreed, but neither eyes turned away from the relationship sinking.
"It's not polite…" Letty continued, eyes glued to the scene, Tessa finally stopping, a heavy sigh dropping out of her. Some calmer words left her, a shrug and small hand movements paired with them.
"Uh-oh, that's the ultimatum." Mia narrated. "Vince does not respond well to ultimatums…"
"There's no way thi-" the girls stopped short. Vince had grabbed Tessa once more, but this time she was pulled in for a kiss.
"She is gunna kick the fuck off, what the hell doe-" Mia collapsed her sentence. "I stand corrected. She likes it." Tessa wasn't only kissing Vince back, but she had her hands grabbing tighter for more.
"She really likes him." Letty agreed, watching as Vince hooked the leg in the denim cut off shorts up to his thigh before lifting her entirely, hands on her ass, lips sealed to hers.
"Alex said he'd miss me tonight." Mia sombrely raised in her tipsy state. "He calls me every night before bed you know. He said he wouldn't be able to sleep tonight without it."
"You could call him." Letty suggested, a wave of romance curling in her. "He'd probably appreciate it."
"It's too loud." Mia glared at the stereo system.
"Borrow Ella's room?" The idea could be seen blooming on Mia's features.
"Yeah. I will." But Mia stumbled to her feet with a wobble and a desperate grip to the back of the soda. "Oh Letty, I don't think I'm entirely sober."
"I told you you'd want another burger."
"Oh god, now I do want another burger. Can we call in for food when we go home? I'm starving."
"Com'on." Letty supported her best friend with a sympathetic smile towards the back bedroom that was specifically off limits to guests. Letty sat her on the bed.
"I thought Pookie was in here?" Mia's mind had chosen that point to recall the pup, or lack there of.
"Ella probably moved her somewhere else. Just call Alex."
Letty found herself smiling as Mia lit up at his voice.
Guess she better find Ella and just let her know Mia was there, probably find the dog too.
And, then she'd find Dom.
There was a wish inside her, hoping he would at least one day be there for her, fire and passion in the middle of a garden screaming their heads off, hopelessly addicted to each other. No care for who saw.
"-I know, but she's so young." Letty picked out Ella's voice above the music and turned hunting for it between people. "And it's so sad, you can't even hold her, or kiss her where anyone could see. Would it be such a terrible crime to be able to kiss your girl? Or such a shame for you to want that? I don't think anybody could judge you for wanting what you want. Deep down, as long as that's what you want." Letty got the sinking feeling this conversation was about her, half of her felt Ella was supporting her, the other half had more serious suspicions. Letty fought across the bodies in her way, drinks knocked and spilling down her legs. "I know what you want, I know what you need. And, I don't think you should apologise for taking what you want. What we both want, really."
Dread was filling her, but nothing could prepare Letty for what she saw. She squeezed through the last barrier of the partiers and Ella was pressed up against Dom, lips crashed to his.
One hand fisting a beer, the other against her top.
Anger.
White hot, fuck everybody, anger blasted through her like an electric shock.
Tear them down, burn their happiness, ruin the world to get her way.
But another beer went down her front in the jostling of the crowd and she recoiled instantly from the cold liquid.
Dom eyes broke from Ella and found her, the guilt rising fast in his deep pools of drunken colour.
"Just let him go, Letty. He needs a woman." Ella tried to barter, her grip still strong on Dom's leather jacket.
But the beer was soaked through to her skin and the smell was crawling into the cloud of anger.
Dom wouldn't do this.
Dom wouldn't kiss her.
Dom would never…
"Letty, wait, let me explain…"
Why would he need to explain if he was innocent?
If he wanted her to wait, fuck him, she was doing the damn opposite.
Letty dove through the gap in the newly formed audience and straight out the door.
Fucking asshole.
The warmth in her chest wasn't a broken heart, not unless there was a lava overflow from the fiery rage first. It demanded she fight hard and fast, even the score. Hurt him.
He wanted her to stay, she could hear him calling her name, pleas to wait for him.
Fuck that.
Letty grabbed the keys from her purse and went straight to the ride he gifted her.
She hated how much she loved it, but it was a means to a suitable end in her eyes.
She yanked hard on the car door and threw herself to earn a few bruises into the seat.
The keys stabbed into the slot like it was a knife her heart and she hit the road with a heavy gas foot, one that demanded action, pain and an even tally.
What would hurt Dom?
His car.
Direction came to her mind and she followed her compass heading to the Toretto house. She was going to bash in his windows, slash his tyres, pour sand in his oil and salt in his petrol. There would be no saving his car, just like her heart.
How dare he kiss Ella?
And her stupid long legs.
Would she forever be reliving that moment of Ella wrapped around him?
Ella pulling him in?
Ella sinking her lips to his?
Ella crushing her body against his?
Ella did this…
Letty felt the clouds of rage lift for a second.
Ella did this.
Ella was the one to pull him in, to kiss him, to push herself against him.
Dom wasn't pulling her closer.
Perhaps he was pushing her away?
Dom didn't start this.
Dom didn't even have his eyes closed.
He didn't love Ella at all.
This wasn't Dom's fault.
She wasn't wrong to trust him.
To love him.
This was all Ella.
Letty heard the steering wheel protest her grip before she realised how tight it was.
And she was still driving to the Toretto's.
Her anger would be much better placed at Ella's.
On the other side of this hill there was a roundabout that was going to be taken with a handbrake turn and she was heading right back.
Fuck Ella and her long legs.
Letty slammed her foot on the brake, an object running into her path from the pavement.
A child?
At this hour?!
Letty felt the steering wobble, the tyres protest before clipping the curb and suddenly Letty felt the gravity in the car turn, metal scraping noisily, the seatbelt pulling tight against her.
Her head took a blow and Letty peeled open her eyes in the quiet to find herself upside down on the world, the car on its roof.
Where was the child?
The car was silent, stalling itself in the motions and she heard the grass move under the weight of a visitor.
Letty reached for her seatbelt release but the device was jammed.
And there was something warm running down her face, odds on, it was blood.
There was something creaking, rubbing and grating against the metal.
A nose came into the hole where her driver's window should be. A big black nose.
Followed by the brown fur of a Rottweiler.
A tongue lopped out with a grin.
A tongue that Letty was all too familiar with.
"Are you kidding me?" Letty groaned to herself, the blood now dripping onto the roof of the car. It was gunna be a pain in the ass to get out.
And Dom wouldn't let her hear the end of it.
Whatever was groaning and creaking in the car was getting louder.
Letty scrambled to the seatbelt again, trying to slip it, or release it. Figure out how much damage was done to her baby. How much damage was done to herself.
The groaning ceased, only to be replaced by a woody crack the resounded in the car.
Letty felt her stomach drop and the car that was stuck on a tree on the hill dropped down again, rolling down the banking three times over.
